\n
Media reports have identified him by the alias of \u201cTyler\u201d or “tylerb.” Tech security publication Krebs on Security<\/em> named him as Tyler Buchanan of Dundee, Scotland. That identity couldn\u2019t be immediately confirmed. It\u2019s unclear what charges were filed against him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n“Tyler” was arrested as he was boarding a plane from Palme, Spain that was heading to Italy, according to Murcia Today<\/em>, a Spanish news outlet. He was also linked to the theft of $27M in Bitcoin from corporate accounts, according to news reports.<\/p>\nThe hackers took part in a practice known as SIM-swapping, according to cybersecurity professionals. Hackers using this method are able to steal passwords used in the authentication of accounts. Security professionals also say the hackers used SMS phishing in the attacks.<\/p>\n
Spanish Police and the US FBI were investigating the case. Spanish police made the arrest. The case was prepared by the Los Angeles office of the FBI, according to Cybernews.<\/em><\/p>\nKrebs also reported that Tyler\u2019s residence was invaded last year by criminals hired by other hacking groups who threatened Tyler and his mother if they didn\u2019t hand over keys to cryptocurrency wallets, the report said. He then fled from Scotland in fear for his safety.<\/p>\n
This month’s arrest was a major step in cracking down on high-profile cybercriminals.<\/p>\n
Law enforcement has made another major move with this arrest,\u201d Rafe Pilling, director of threat intelligence at Secureworks Counter Threat Unit, was quoted by The Record, <\/em>a tech publication. \u201cThere’s still a long way to go but the blows keep coming for the cyber criminal gangs right now.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\u201cThese groups have long felt untouchable, obfuscated by the complexities of the internet and the anonymity it offers, but the tables are turning,\u201d Pilling explained. \u201cThe interesting piece here is that the alleged perpetrators are operating from the UK and US where, unlike with Russian-speaking groups, law enforcement can reach them.\u201d<\/p>\n
MGM, Caesars<\/h2>\n
Last September, MGM Resorts saw a roughly week-long outage of its internal cybersecurity and data systems following a hack carried out by Scattered Spider. MGM didn\u2019t pay money to the hackers, but it faced a $100M hit to its third-quarter earnings and $10M in one-time expenses.<\/p>\n
At the time of the MGM attack, Scattered Spider also successfully extorted tens of millions of dollars from Caesars Entertainment<\/a>, according to Bloomberg News<\/em>.<\/p>\nOther Hacks<\/h2>\n
Beyond the casino companies, Scattered Spider has been linked to the hacking of Twilio, LastPass, DoorDash, Mailchimp, and some 130 other organizations over the last couple of years, Krebs reported.<\/p>\n
In January, Noah Urban, 19, who authorities claim is also linked to high-profile hacks by Scattered Spider was arrested in Florida. He\u2019s also known by the alias of \u201cKing Bob.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\nUrban was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, as well as eight counts of wire fraud and five counts of aggravated identity theft.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A 22-year-old UK national accused of playing a major role in last year\u2019s hacking of MGM Resorts International was apprehended recently in Spain.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":323264,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,16693],"tags":[82705,13766,88788,82024,82041],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
MGM Resorts Suspected Hacker Arrested in Spain: Report<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n